Quarantined
by dwparsnip
Summary: Cadman stops by to give Rodney some comfort when he's sick. CadmanMcKay shipfic. No spoilers that I can think of.


OK. This is my first SGA fic. Warning…I'm a hopeless romantic, so expect some mush if you plan on reading ahead. Furthermore, I'm fan of the McKay/Cadman concept. Sorry.

For the record, I do not own Stargate Atlantis or anything associated with it. As far as I know that honor falls upon MGM.

Let me know if you like it...or if it sucks. It hasn't been beta'ed, so all mistakes are my bad.

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"Are you the only person in the city who doesn't know that I'm in quarantine?", snapped Dr. Rodney McKay. He knew she knew of course, but his question was automatic. For a super intelligent scientist he was often the victim of shooting off his big mouth before letting his gray matter vet the comments. Those close to him knew it and accepted it as a personality quirk, accepted it as just the way he was. The woman in the doorway now even called it one of his more endearing qualities.

Thank God.

They had been seeing each other for a couple of weeks before what Sheppard now calls "McKay's Adventure in Poo Poo Land". McKay still didn't know why he got to name things. The two weeks or so that they were together had been a feeling out phase, despite the fact that they knew each other from their body sharing experience and their working together. Still, being a couple was a different kettle of fish as they say on Canada's east coast. A whole new ballgame as Sheppard might say.

He hadn't been able to see her for almost a week because of the nasty, and highly contagious bug he picked up on P3K-385. He had actually spent the five days after contracting the bug in the quarantine unit in the infirmary, with Carson and a bunch of other doctors and nurses buzzing around him in bio hazard suits. It wasn't deadly, just very…inconvenient, with fever, itchy rashes and seriously painful stomach cramps followed by an immediate evacuation of said stomach by means that were best forgotten about. Hence Sheppard's moniker for the mission. He still didn't feel comfortable sitting down, and he technically still had another day out of two of house arrest before his quarantine was officially lifted.

His visitor smirked as she brought her hands around from behind her back and held up two different bottles of hand sanitizer and a medical mask. She slipped the mask on over her face and though her face was now covered, he knew she was smiling broadly. She struck a glamorous pose and asked, "What do you think, Rodney?"

He grunted and then let loose and exacerbated sigh. He hated it when people thought of everything…especially her. It was just another area in which she usually had him outmatched. Usually, but not always. It was bad enough that she knew the access code to his door (he never thought once about changing it), but she actually seemed to know what he was thinking and what he was going to say before he did. For the most part it came in handy and he liked it, though he would never admit it. For the other part it was just annoying.

It also didn't help that the mask she was wearing only minimally diminished her beauty. Her hazel eyes still danced with life and affection, her reddish hair still flowed down around her shoulders and the not so loose sweat suit did a lot to accentuate her athletic (aka sexy) curves. He was fairly certain that was on purpose. She could be a terribly mean woman when she wanted to be.

"You can't be serious!", he exclaimed incredulously and with a little bit more of a high pitched voice than he liked. "A flimsy mask and some hand lotion! Let me guess." He rubbed his chin as he feigned deep contemplation and then snapped his fingers. "Next you'll reach out into the hall and bring in a bowl of chicken soup!"

Her eyebrows made their way up into the middle of her forehead, and Rodney started to get a very peculiar feeling in the pit of his stomach that had nothing to do with the sickness he was fighting. She placed the bottles of sanitizer on the table near the door and then stepped back out into the hall, reappearing a moment later with none other than a steaming bowl of chicken soup in her hands.

Rodney opened his mouth to say something, but before he could utter one syllable of what she was sure was going to be a particularly obtuse comment she spoke.

"Carson gave me the mask and the sanitizing lotion and suggested the soup", she said forcefully. "He also gave me permission to stay for a short while, seeing as how this extra day of quarantine was precautionary anyway."

She moved inside, acutely aware that he was watching her very intently and closed the door. She walked over next to him and placed the soup on the table next to his bed and then placed her right hand upon his forehead. "You're still warm", she announced with a hint of concern in her voice.

He rolled his eyes as his mouth took off without receiving clearance from his brain…again. "Thank you Dr. Cadman. I must have missed your graduation from medical school during one of my off-world excursions."

A serious kind of hurt flashed in her eyes, instantly making him feel like an infantile idiot who should do her a favor and curl up under his heavy blanket and perish. He knew however, that the opposite course of action was immediately required.

He reached out and took her hand as she brought it down from his forehead and held onto her for what amounted to dear life. He was incredibly happy to see her. Her presence was a boost to his sagging morale and feeling of loneliness. Not even Sheppard, his best friend, had dared to risk exposure to the bug by dropping by.

The wimp.

Rodney scooted over on his bed, mindful of his bothersome derriere, and gently pulled Cadman down to sit beside him. "Thanks, Cadman." He smiled and caressed her hand with his own. He let his eyes drift down to watch his fingers dance across her soft skin, allowing the reality of what he was doing to sink in. After a moment he looked back up to her and saw the hurt caused by his earlier comment gone…replaced by warmth and affection. "Thank you for the soup, for the company, " his eyes dropped down to her hand again as he added solemnly, "and, well you know, for caring."

Underneath the mask Laura's smile widened until her face started to ache. It wasn't often that Rodney opened up so much, even to her, so when he did it always made her smile.

Plus the way that his warm hand kept tracing abstract patterns across her own hand was stirring something within her that she still hadn't become used to feeling. The physical desires that came with his touch were still somewhat alien to her, though incredibly welcomed, and she tried to show him that there was no doubt about it.

"You're very welcome, Rodney", she said in a tone that matched his own. She looked down to their hands and willed her fingers to become interlaced with his. She was pleasantly surprised when he permitted her fingers to work their way in between his own. She was even more surprised when her eyes slowly worked their way up to his and she found him looking at her with passion blazing in his bright blue eyes. Her breath got caught somewhere in her chest as she realized that he wanted the same thing she did at that moment, and she leaned in to kiss him as he moved up to kiss her.

Unfortunately, neither of them seemed to notice or remember the mask on her face. They both broke out in fits of laughter when his mouth found the cloth material of the mask instead of her lips.

The mood and the moment ruined, Rodney settled back down onto his bed. He was about to mumble an apology when Cadman pressed her mask free lips against his. It had happened so fast that he never even saw her remove the mask or see her coming towards him.

It took a moment for McKay to catch up to her as he thought irritably, _"Damn the element of surprise anyway!"_ He joined in the kiss, savoring the taste of her lips and the velvety feel of them against his. She had just started to deepen the kiss, really deepen it, when something occurred to him, hitting him much as the charge from a Wraith stunner would - he was quarantined!

Rodney opened his eyes wide and grabbed Cadman by the shoulders and pushed her away from him even as he tried to move off to the other side of the bed. Free from her, though he hardly called it freedom as leaving the comfort of her kiss was really agonizing, he rolled over onto his left side, intending to roll off the bed and onto his feet in one movement.

Likely story.

Rodney had realized long ago that fate had been very unkind to him in regards to physical dexterity. Instead of his feet taking hold on the floor and giving him the necessary traction and leverage for his intended maneuver, both feet slipped on the hard surface sending him crashing to the floor.

He impacted the floor with a resounding thump, followed very closely by Laura Cadman's worried yelp. As she rushed around the bed to check on him, he rolled over onto his back and held out a hand to keep her at bay.

Laura came to a halt when she saw Rodney holding up his hand. She was torn at the moment between marching over to him and kicking his ass for pushing her away, storming out of his room and never returning, and finally going to him and continuing with their kiss whether he liked it or not. In the meantime, he seemed to be enjoying their kiss with a fair amount of enthusiasm, that is until he pushed her away.

"Rodney", she began, not bothering to try to disguise the hurt and the anger in her voice. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

"I'm in quarantine, Cadman", he stated as though he were telling her that the Earth was round. "I'm in quarantine because I have a contagious disease. Do you know what contagious means, Cadman?"

Cadman felt herself relax despite his sarcasm. She had assumed the worst (a workplace hazard) and thought that he was rejecting her. She realized now that he was looking out for her, in his own abrasive way, and the anger slowly started to melt away.

"Rodney, your quarantine is over…well, almost over." She smiled and moved to his side. She held out her hand to him, and when he took it a moment later she helped him up off the cold deck.

They stood there next to each other. Rodney was the first to speak, and when he did she was surprised to hear his voice sound so…sincere.

"Laura, we shouldn't be doing this right now." He brought his right hand up to scratch the back of his head and added, "If anything happens to you Carson will kill me."

Laura was just about to protest when he added quietly, "And I wouldn't forgive myself either."

It was probably the only thing he could have said to her that would defuse all of her arguments, she realized with some chagrin. _"He's figuring me out"_, she said to herself. _"Damn."_

As she had those thoughts he reached across his bed, retrieved her mask and regarded it sadly. He sighed and handed it to her.

She smiled a morbid smile as she took it from him. "I should probably go." She turned to leave but couldn't because Rodney developed a sudden and very secure attachment to her right forearm.

When she looked at him she still saw the fire in his eyes. He released her arm and took the mask back, tying the bottom part of the mask around her neck. Carefully, deliberately, he slipped the top end of the around her head just above her ears once again covering her mouth and nose.

His hands dropped down to rest against his legs and he hesitated. His eyes darted between the door, her hands and finally, her eyes. When he found her eyes he stopped and opened his mouth twice without saying anything.

Cadman decided to give him an easy way out. "I'll see you tomorrow…"

"Stay a little while", he interrupted softly. "Please."

Laura Cadman looked into the eyes of the man she used to think was a nuisance, and realized that he wanted her to stay, almost as much as she wanted to. She was thrilled to the point where all she could do to answer his request was simply nod her head.

Rodney walked around to the other side of the bed and lay down, making sure there was plenty of room for her on the other side. He held out his hand for her and gently pulled her down to lie beside him when she took it. They both let their heads fall onto the pillows, and Rodney allowed himself to savor the content look in her eyes as she stared back at him.

Cadman couldn't believe the peaceful look in his eyes, and she could no longer ignore the urge to touch him. Her left hand reached down to hold his right hand as he let it lay on the bed between them. She smiled as the warmth in his touch once again spread throughout her. She sighed contentedly and closed her eyes, only to open them a moment later in surprise as he brought her hand up and gently kissed it. He let loose his on contented sigh and held their combined hands against his chest.

Rodney couldn't see it because of the mask, but he was pretty certain that there was a mile wide smile on her face, one that matched the smile on his own face.

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Twelve days later…

Laura Cadman was stretched out on her bed when the chime sounded on her door. She decided to ignore it and closed her eyes. A moment later the door opened. She looked up, ready to unleash the pent up anger that a ten day quarantine gave her upon the intruder, but when she saw those blue eyes all she could do was smile. She missed him, even if he had been around.

She had caught the stomach flu like bug from him, forcing her into a seven day quarantine in the infirmary, followed by a three day quarantine in her quarters. The extra time Carson had said, was partly punishment for not heeding his orders and partly because the bug seemed to be more resilient than he had thought. Rodney had been by the quarantine unit daily, asking her if she needed or wanted anything. He had come by every couple of hours after she got clearance to go home to her quarters, both of them painfully mindful of the dire threats from Carson and Sheppard if they caught him going inside.

He had been extremely supportive during her quarantine, even commandeering the Daedalus' transporter to beam flowers and a TV/VCR combination unit into her quarters. It was romantic as hell as far as she was concerned.

He looked at her now and she couldn't help but laugh at the mask covering his face. "Coming in today?", she asked hopefully.

"Not on your life", came a thickly accented voice from behind him. Carson stepped around Rodney and shot her a dirty look for suggesting it. At least she thought it was a dirty look. She couldn't really tell because like Rodney he was wearing a mask.

"Come on, Carson", she implored, "it's been ten days!"

"Aye", came his amused response. "And you can wait a few more hours." He turned to Rodney, grabbed him by the shoulder and pulled him away from the door without letting him so much as utter a syllable.

The door closed and Laura Cadman sat on her bed wondering what just happened. She just fell back onto the bed and got comfortable when the door opened again. She never bothered to get up, this time only barely lifting her head enough to see Rodney march in.

She furrowed her brow in confusion and he stated nonchalantly, "I threatened to cut power to his office and his quarters." He shrugged as if it was no big deal, and it probably wasn't for him.

Cadman smiled as she held out her arms, and her smile widened when he fell gently into her waiting embrace. They shifted so that she could cuddle her head against his chest and put her arm around his waist. He in turn rested his chin against the top of her head and hugged her around her shoulders.

"This is nice", she whispered against his chest. She felt his kiss on her head and heard his response of, "Yes…yes it is."

She smiled and she knew that he was smiling too. A few moments later, McKay and Cadman fell asleep in each other's arms, and oddly enough it was the first time in ten days that either of them had been able to sleep at all.

The End.


End file.
